Instrument for use in performing surgical eye operations



May 29, 1951 2,555,076

E. R. CROSSLEY INSTRUMENT FOR USE IN PERFORMING SURGICAL EYE OPERATIONS Filed Nov. 17, 1947 1111] HHHHHHIHIHHHHH HIH "A llllIHIHI]IJHIHIHHIHIHII ll """NHH Patented May 29,1951

UNITED STATES PATENT OFFICE 2,555,676 mistress 156s Usi rERFoEMiNG SURGICAL EYE OPERATIONS Elijah It. Crossley, Chicago; 111. Application lalovember 17, 1 947 Serial Nb. 'ifigi'ill s 015555; (01. 128 303) 1 This invention relates to surgical instruments in. general, but more specifically the invention relates to an instrument for use in performing operations on the eye. V H i A The treatment of certain pathological conditions of the eye such as lenticular opacity, often requires the removal of the lensor cataract of the t he. 31931 1 of he en Q ca rac u a l isaccomplished by making an incision through the cornea at the junction of the cornea and e r lja andihe r mo n th s t ou h the pupillary space in the iris and the incision of eeome 5 rQq i e b e d fiacul h et r beatencountered by reason of thefact thatit is di cult, among other things. to take hold of and maintain a holdupon the lens during the operation of revi sib le s- ,5 Animportant object of the presen t invention lih ro ono a n e and improve instrument r in are o tion thainstrumen includinga vacuum cup, which is adaptedto be inserted through an incision at the junctur of e. rn aa d. s le al n lac d e tly 9 the lens and in contact therewith so as to cause a portion of the lens to be drawnintothe cup by vacuum to produce a bleb, whereby th e cup will become firmly attached to the lens; there being improved means provided whereby the vacuum in the cup may be controlled, and the instrument including thecup; maybe manipulated readily for disconnecting the lens and capsule from itsattachment (the zonul of Zinn) of the eye. thus removing the entire opaque lens (or cataract) and the entire" capsule from'the eye inione operation. Another important object of the inventionis the" provision of a new and novel surgical instrumenu for use in eye operations. the instrument having a vacuum cup provided witha restricted inlet, and an opening properly shaped and arranged sothat a portion of the capsule andlens may bejdrawn thereinto, and that when so drawn, the cu'p'and a portion of the lens will per-gem so interlocked that it' willbe impossiblit'o sep the cup "and the attachedpor'tion of the "lens dur; ing'the operation unless the vacuum in'thejcupis released. I 4 v I p y A further object is theprovision of an improved instrument which is' simple in construction, and efiect'ive and efficient in use.

Numerous other objects and advantagesw'illfbe apparent throughout the progress of the specifi catiohwhich follows. V o v p The accompanying drawings illustrate lcted embodiment of'the invention; a'ridthe 'V WS therein'are as follows.

Fig. 1 is a diagrammatic traiisverse sec iew of a portion of an eye showing th the pupillary Space, a portion (if the 1 removed to produce a larger space for t to be removed and for prophylactic against subsequent complication; J p t Fig. 2 is aview showing a portion or the, instrumerit constructed inaccorda'noe with the p iiciples of this invention and connected to the eye lens; g.3 is an eieva'uonal view or the instrument embodying the present invention;

, Fig. 4 is a detail sectional iew, on an enlarged scale, of one form of vacuum: cup; and

Fig. 5 is a view similar to Fig. 4; of another form of vacuum cup.

Referring to the drawing, and particularl'y to Figs. 1 and 2 thereof, there is illustrated anyball which includes the lens [2, the posterior lens I 3; anterior portion ciliary body terminating theiris' Hi, the pup'illary space [5 in the iris th'e cs'rn'ea [Rand the conjllhctivia I1 Of ane' e,

."Ihe instrument forming the subject matter of the present invention may be of any proper s'iie and configuration, and it may be constructeapr anyflr'n'ater'ialsuitable to perform the, run t'on intended. The in 's'trument maybe constf u to include a handle portion' [8 having; a" ser'i or transverse ribsor corrugations spro iaeddnj 1e or more surfaces; whereby it may be held vi n grasped between the fingers. A tubular mere er 21); of any suitable proper length and diameter project's froin' orie end of thehandle [8; and a vacuu Cup; 2! is arranged, one lid Of tubular rjrieiiiber. The tubular membe '20 Cbfnhl'unliiatipii With the interior OT the',cup .2li, a; the diametric center thereof a indicated at The'cup; Z I is 'prjovided with a restricted receiving opening'zs' or a diameter considerably less than theicross sectionalfdiameter of the body portion of the' cup' and this receiving openin'si23 may be farme many desired or suitable nianner; pref:-

erably by means or an. annular ring; member '231 suitably shaped and secured aboutthe'opening 23 of the cupit, as indicated at Fig. 4'

The handle J 8 of, the instrument is provided with. a. pa s ge 26' the. eth s ;w c 1301 municates'iwith the passage in the tubularey tensioniil; and'the' extremity oflthe' handle I8 is; shaped as indicated at 21, Fig}, to form a I 1e: attaching shoulder overfwhi'ch one end offa flexible tubularmembergilfis sbll ll'edl i'l'hg flexible tubular member 28 has c ommurii atioii with a suitable vacuum producing meansso that a vacuum may be created in the vacuum cup 2| when the inlet opening 23 thereof is made to contact the lens and capsule in the proper manner, there being a control opening 29 in the handle so as to control the vacuum to the cup by permitting the opening to remain open, or to cause the opening to be closed such as by placing a finger thereover.

The opening 29 extends through the handle l8 and communicates with the passage 26 therein, the opening 29 providing means for controlling the vacuum in and to the cup 2|. The opening 29 may be surrounded with an elevated encircling bead or ring so as to provide a definite shut-01f by pressing a finger thereover. When the instrument is in use, and the opening 29 is sealed or closed by the finger of the operator, the vacuum producing device will cause a vacuum to be produced in the cup 2|, and when the finger is removed from the opening 29, the vacuum in the vacuum cup will be released.

To use this instrument in performing a surgical operation upon the eye for removing the lens, it is preferable to first make an incision through the cornea It as indicated at 30, Fig. 2, and then by means of tweezers, or other suitable instrument, inserted through the incision 3|), 2. portion of the iris i4 is withdrawn therethrough, a portion of the iris being removed as indicated at 3| to produce a larger space or opening for the lens to be removed. The end of the instrument is then inserted through the incision 30 so as to position the restricted opening 23 of the cup 2| directly over, and in contact with, the lens i2. The vacuum producing device being in operation and the opening 29 being uncovered, no vacuum will be produced in the vacuum cup 2|, even though the opening 23 is closed by the contact of the edge of the opening with the lens. When the vacuum cup has been properly positioned, the operator places a finger of the hand which holds the instrument, upon the opening 29, with the result that a vacuum will be immediately manifested in the vacuum cup 2|. This vacuum will draw a portion of the lens |2 into the vacuum cup in the form of a bleb 32; the outer end of the bleb passing into the vacuum cup in substantially nail-head formation will cause the lens to adhere to the end of the instrument, because of the vacuum in the cup 2| and therefore the cup and lens will be interlocked firmly.

The inlet opening 22 is disposed substantially centrally of the vacuum cup 2| and causes the bleb 32 to be uniformly formed within the cup 2|. When the instrument is in the position shown in Fig. 2, and the operator holds his finger over the opening 29, the two parts are locked together, and by the operator manipulating the instrument, may gradually cause the lens l2 to become detached from the ciliary bodies, thereby rendering it possible to Withdraw the lens through the iris and the incision 33 in the cornea It. So long as the opening 29 is maintained closed, all danger or possibility of the lens becoming detached from the vacuum cup 2| will be avoided.

The modified form of instrument shown in Fig. may be identical with the instrument shown in Figs. 2, 3 and 4 but includes, in addition thereto, a hollow globular or semi-spherical part or body 33 which is secured to the inside face 34 of the cup 2|. This hollow globular body is arranged concentrically with respect to the opening 22. A plurality of spaced holes 35 are arranged circumferentially about the body 33 so that the vacuum may be had through these holes within the cup 2| and centrally thereof. The instrument shown in Fig. 5, therefore, includes all the elements of the previously described device, but includes the body 33, the vacuum still being centrally of the cup 2|. The body 33, however, is for the purpose of deflecting the lens and capsule laterally in all directions and prevents the capsule and lens from being pulled too far inwardly by the suction, a condition which may not be favorable under certain circumstances such as hyper-mature cataracts. The structure of Fig. 5, like the structure of Figs. 2 to 4, permits communication with the interior of the cup 2|, the vacuum, interiorly of the cup, being through the small .holes 35, Fig. 5, when the restricted opening 23 is in co-adaptation with an eye capsule and the interior surface of the eye lens.

The vacuum-forming device when in operation, and the opening 29 being closed by the forefinger of the operator, causes the capsule and lens substance to be immediately drawn into the vacuum cup. The center of the bleb 32 will be retarded, and not allowed to balloon up as high as in Fig. 4, but instead will be spread out to assume the formation, substantially as shown in dotted lines in Fig. 5. The capsule sometimes becomes fragile in hyper-mature cataracts and may break, therefore, the presence of the body 33 will prevent the bleb from ballooning and, at the same time, cause a true nailhead hold on the lens.

Changes may be made in the form, construction and arrangement of the parts without departing from the spirit of the invention or sacrificing any of its advantages, and the right is hereby reserved to make all such changes as fall fairly within the scope of the following claims.

The invention is hereby claimed as follows:

1. An instrument for performing surgical eye operations comprising a handle having a vacuum creating passage therethrough and adapted to be connected to a source of vacuum, a vacuum cup carried by one end of the handle and having an open front, said cup having a central opening in communication with said passage, means for controlling at will the said vacuum, and a hollow semi-spherical member extending outwardly from the inside face of the cup toward the open front, said member having a plurality of openings spaced about a part of the periphery thereof.

2. A surgical instrument for use in performing surgical eye operations comprising a handle member of a predetermined size and configuration, a thin tube projecting from one end of the handle member, a cup-like member at the end of the tube and having an opening into which a part of an eye may be received, there being a continuous passage through the handle and tube, said cup having a passage therein in communication with the first passage and terminating in an aperture located substantially centrally of the cup, remote from the opening, a centrally disposed reverse cup-like member over the aperture and bulging outwardly toward the opening in said cup, there being a plurality of openings formed in said latter cup-like member.

3. A surgical instrument for use in connection with surgical eye operations comprising a cup like member having an enclosed body with an open front and a base disposed rearwardly of the open'front, the body increasing in size and terminating into a bulged side near the base and remote from the open front, said body having a passage therein terminating in an aperture positioned centrally of the cup at its base, a domelike rnember bulging outwardly from the base UNITED STATES PATENTS toward the front and surrounding the aperture,

Number Name Date said dome-like member having a plurality of 1,615 494 Waring Jan 25 1927 Pemngs therem- 1,931,740 Ryan 051;. 24, 1933' 2,224,575 Montalvo-Guenard Dec. 10, 1940 ELIJAH CROSSLEEY 2,293,171 Reardon Aug. 18, 1942 OTHER REFERENCES REFERENCES CITED General Catalog of V. Mueller 8; 00., Chicago, The following references are of record in the 10 Illinois (1933), p 7, Instrument (A C PY file of this patent: is in Div. 55 of the Patent Ofiice.) 

